Before the Coffee Gets Cold: A Toshikazu Kawaguchi Book Set

By: Toshikazu Kawaguchi

Narrated by: Arina Ii, Kevin Shen

The first three books in the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series packaged together.

What would you do if you could travel back in time? Discover the internationally bestselling novels of Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s Before the Coffee Gets Cold series, now a worldwide phenomenon and BookTok sensation, in this special new book set. Step inside Tokyo’s whimsical Café Funiculi Funicula and travel back in time with a cast of unforgettable characters, including:

• Before the Coffee Gets Cold: estranged sisters, a newly pregnant customer, and the wife of a man with early onset Alzheimer’s
• Tales from the Café: a detective with a gift, a son with regrets, and a man chasing “the one who got away”
• Before Your Memory Fades: a comedian with big dreams, a grieving sister, and childhood lovers

For new and longtime fans alike, this set is the perfect collection of heartwarming, uplifting tales that remind us we “don’t have to live burdened by regret” (New York Times). Translated from Japanese in the signature prose of Geoffrey Trousselot, each installment of this series brings new adventure that has captivated millions of readers around the world.

Meet more wonderful characters in the rest of the captivating Before the Coffee Gets Cold series:

• Before the Coffee Gets Cold (Book 1)
• Tales from the Cafe (Book 2)
• Before Your Memory Fades (Book 3)
• Before We Say Goodbye (Book 4)
• Before We Forget Kindness (Book 5)
• Before the Coffee Gets Cold - Boxed Set (Books 1-3)

very profound, lost in translation?

i wish this book were better translated/adapted. I'm half Japanese & when I was reading it, it was very Japanese-y... like everything about it... the characters' mannerisms, the way they speak & idk the more i think about it, maybe it was translated like that on purpose... idk. it was good, but I wish I could read & understand japanese writing & language... felt like I was missing something. anyway, worth the read especially if you're one to get "stuck" in the past & what ifs. also I think they could've chose better narrators.

Exceptional Storytelling

All three books are incredible. Great stories unfold one after the other and the author weaves them together seamlessly. Truly inspiring and unique stories that captivate the reader. I couldn’t put this down. Simply amazing.

Beautiful stories

They were well narrated in English and the stories were beautifully written about human experiences and emotions.

formulaic, but cozy

Book One was my favorite. Book Two dragged a bit, but I loved learning more about the backstories of each character. The lore stretches.

The narration for Book One was quite somber. While Book Two's narration was more upbeat, it was a bit off-putting when recreating female voices. Both performances were good.

I must disclose that this author has discovered a formula for storywriting. If you seek fireworks, do not look here. The repetition is comforting to me, but may appear cliché to others.

The characters

Each of the characters has a life and story to tell. Each finds there way through past, present and future. Fascinating storytelling with a message for all.